


Finding Purpose

by xo_thefirst



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, hinted possible one-sided!baeksoo, mild bullying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-17
Updated: 2017-01-17
Packaged: 2018-09-18 06:21:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9372059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xo_thefirst/pseuds/xo_thefirst
Summary: Sehun finds comfort inWhimsical,Apricity, andPurpose.





	

_Inclemency_ —

The needle isn’t as painful as everyone says. It’s menacing and sharp, eerily similar to the needles used in hospitals, but Sehun quickly learns it’s only at first glance. There’s something else stuck to the end of the needle, where he watches as some black liquid fills the container, and he asks the man holding it what it’s for. His mother silences him immediately but the man only laughs, says, “It’s ink, like the stuff you color your papers with at home,” and Sehun complains because “I like pink, mister. Why does it have to be black?”

His mother only tries to silence him again, “Sehun, don’t be rude,” but all Sehun does is pout, flicking his gaze up to stare at the word behind his mother’s right ear, on her neck. It’s a big word, one that Sehun can never pronounce correctly the first time, but he wonders if his word is going to be just as long, just as strong as like his father says of his mother. It’s been there as long as Sehun can remember, in his ten long years of life, and he remembers poking at it when he was younger, poking at his father’s word behind his right ear too, because it seems to glimmer every few minutes even if there’s no light to shine on it.

The man with the black gloves is pulling on his right ear now, trying to move it out of the way, and Sehun clamps his eyes and mouth shut because the needle looks like it’s going to hurt, no matter how different it looks from the hospital ones. It always hurts when he goes to the doctor. But then the vibrating fills his ears, his mother finds his hand and holds his head still, and then there’s a pinch. The needle makes his head vibrate and Sehun opens his eyes to see the world shaking a little, or maybe he’s being dramatic.

It feels like it takes hours before the man is finally moving away. Sehun still feels shaky, like his head is shaking back and forth without meaning to, but he winces when the man presses down a bit too hard on his sensitive skin with a soft cloth. He stares up at him, trying to focus his vision. “Mama?” he calls, because his head is still cradled in her hands. “Is it done?” He watches as the man lays the needle down on the small silver table, stares at the needle like it’s going to change his life or maybe give him some weird medicine he’s told will help him live longer. “Mama?”

“It’s done, sweetie,” his mother says softly, waiting until the man gives him one final pat on the neck. Sehun tries to turn his head when his mother removes her hands, only to see the man giving him a soft, sad smile before he leaves the room. The room is as white and clean as it is at the doctor’s office. This place is strange.

Sehun spins in his chair when the door closes, smiling and laughing, because they don’t have these fun chairs in the doctor’s office. He only stills when his mother catches him from tipping over, laughing softly with him, and placing a kiss on his forehead. He stares at the word behind her ear again: _Resilience_.

“Let me see what the Oracle has given you,” she murmurs with a smile, pulling away and tilting his head to the side to see his word. Sehun watches her out of the corners of his eyes, trying to figure out if his word is as cool-sounding as his mom’s, but then the smile fades from her face, confusion following after, before fear strikes her and stays.

“Mama?” he asks quietly, timidly, because nothing ever scares his mama. She’s the one who kills all the bugs in their house!

His mother gently rubs a finger along his ear, tracing his skin down his ear, until she stops right next to where his word is starting to itch. “Let’s go home, Sehunnie,” she murmurs, the fear slowly fading away to sadness. He doesn’t like it when his mama’s sad. “Let’s show papa first, okay?”

There are a lot of kids in the waiting room, all with the same birthday as his, but Sehun doesn’t think they’re the same age. They can’t all be ten years old. Some are taller than him and some are shorter and he wonders if any of them have their words yet. He stops to ask one kid, but his mother tugs him away before he can even open his mouth.

 _Today’s an important day, after all_.

 

Every child learns it through school. At the age of ten, a word is supposed to be tattooed onto one’s neck, always behind the right ear, so it may be easily seen by anyone who spots it. The word supposedly relates to one’s fate, how one’s life is led, and Sehun happened to learn it like everyone else. He expected it, had asked his parents about it, and learned more about it.

His mother’s word is _Resilience_. It’s strong, capable, just like his mother. His father’s word is _Crest_. It’s hopeful, happy, just like his father. Sehun thinks their words match them completely and he can only hope he matches his own word, excitedly thinking about when he can return to school and show off his new word to everybody else.

It’s supposed to be fun. Sehun has always found school to be fun. He learns more about the history of their world and how it came to be, how the Oracle appeared and has stayed ever since, and he likes that he can fill his head with new facts any chance he gets.

He thinks it’s also pretty cool how his books have pictures of the Oracle, past and present, and how each one only lives to be about twenty to twenty-five years of age. The Oracle is always a female and her appearance changes each time she’s born. He wonders what the parents think about when they realize their daughter is the Oracle. Are they scared? Are they happy?

Sehun smiles as he settles down in his seat, waiting for class to start. He wants to scratch at his neck, “It’s so _itchy_ ,” but he doesn’t touch it. His mother put some of that soothing cream on his neck before he left the house and he doesn’t want to ruin all her hard work.

He gasps when someone accidentally bumps into him.

“Oh, sorry,” his classmate says, giving him an apologetic smile, before he stares at him. Sehun murmurs that “it’s okay,” but he doesn’t understand why his classmate is staring at him. “Hey, Sehun,” he murmurs, bending down to peer at his word. “What does _In-cle-men-cy_ mean?”

Sehun stares at him some more, confused, because he doesn’t know what that means either. “I don’t know?” he says, trying to turn and look to see where his classmate is staring. “Why?”

The other boy suddenly points at his neck, Sehun flinching at how close his finger got to touching him. The area is still sensitive. “It’s on your neck. It’s your word. Did your mama or papa tell you?”

No, Sehun thinks, they didn’t, and he guesses he knows why now. He doesn’t even know what it means.

“Jongin,” the teacher calls, walking into class and straight to her desk. Jongin immediately straightens before returning to his desk by the window.

Sehun can only watch as he walks away, confused, because now he knows what his word is. He doesn’t know what it means, but it’s his word and it doesn’t sound as pretty as his dad’s or as strong as his mom’s. It sounds funny and when he catches Jongin’s gaze again, he pouts.

 

Other kids ask him what the word on his neck is. Sehun tells them what Jongin told him: _Inclemency_.

Other kids ask him what his word means. Sehun tells them he doesn’t know.

Other kids ask teachers in class what his word means. Sehun finds no one gives him a straight answer.

 

His parents tell him his word isn’t really a good word. It’s not as kind as others, not as welcoming, but his mother tells him he’s the kindest boy she’s ever known. She would say, “You’re kind and beautiful, Sehun. Remember that, okay?” and Sehun can’t help but nod in return, watch as his father’s face falls the slightest bit when he silently reads his word again. “Okay, mama.”

 

It’s during middle school where Sehun truly learns the meaning of his word, of _Inclemency_. Middle school in general isn’t friendly: the students are meaner, the teachers are barely present, and it’s an entirely new environment. But Sehun slowly finds that nobody really wants to associate with him anymore because of his word. It’s rude, unkind, and every other kid says it’s because of his face. He looks mean if he’s not smiling, but smiling every minute of every day gets tiring. His cheeks start to hurt and he doesn’t even know if he’s actually smiling anymore.

He almost cries out when he’s shoved again, some classmate of his snickering as he walks by him. “The Oracle must be right,” some girl says, trying to whisper, as Sehun makes his way to class. “He’s mean. Of course, his word would be _that_.” He wants to scoff. She’s not being discrete at all. But that would make him mean, right? So, he doesn’t.

He goes to class. He studies. He tries.

His grades waver by the end of his first year, but he manages to attain good grades. His teachers don’t look happy about it, but they never look happy when he goes up to them and asks for help. He doesn’t know why, but his parents tell him, “Old people are superstitious. Don’t take whatever they do to heart.” He doesn’t tell them that his teachers are fairly young, fairly pretty, with nice words tattooed into their necks.

 

 

 _Whimsical_ —

Sehun feels like crying. He’s in the library, studying even after his eyes have started to hurt, but he needs to study to pass his math exam. He doesn’t even know why he’s failing it. He understands all the material and he gets every question right, but he _just doesn’t understand_. He flinches when he sees something out of the corner of his eye, flying at him, until it lands on his table and bumps into his hand. He looks over, surprised to see a paper ball, and looks up to see who threw it.

There’s another boy there, standing behind his desk, and he’s amazed when the boy suddenly gives him a bright smile. It’s in the shape of a heart and Sehun’s own heart speeds at the sight of it.

“My name is Kyungsoo,” the boy introduces, giving him a small wave. “You look like you’re about to cry. Why don’t you take a break?”

Sehun gapes at the boy. “What?”

“I’ve seen you around school,” Kyungsoo quietly confesses, before his eyes widen and he panics. “I meant, well, yeah, I’ve seen you around school–I’m a year ahead of you–but every time I try to talk to you, you’re already walking away to class.”

Sehun isn’t sure what to say. He knows his parents are picking him up soon, but he doesn’t know what to say to this boy. Now that he mentions it, he does remember seeing him before. He’s always in the middle of a group of kids, laughing and joking around, but why is he talking to him? “Kyungsoo?” he asks, quietly, uncertainly. He watches as Kyungsoo nods at him encouragingly. “I–” he cuts himself off. He doesn’t know how to phrase the question he wants to ask. Instead, he simply turns his head where Kyungsoo can clearly see his word.

There’s a moment of silence before Kyungsoo is patting his shoulder. “I don’t care about that,” Kyungsoo says, giving him another bright smile. “You look like you’re going to cry and I don’t like that. Come on. Let’s play.”

“In the library?!” Sehun squeaks, stunned. He moves easily when Kyungsoo tugs on his arm, his homework and upcoming exam forgotten. He stares at him with his mouth wide open. “Are you crazy?”

“Have you seen my own word?” Kyungoso asks in return, laughing. Sehun stumbles as he tries to get a good look at his word, seeing _Whimsical_ glimmer in the fluorescent lights, and gasps when they’re suddenly hiding behind a bookshelf. He clamps his mouth shut when Kyungsoo gestures him to, waiting, heart pounding, as he hears the librarian approaching them before she simply passes by them without a care in the world.

When they’re in the clear, Sehun pouts at him. “Kyungsoo, what are you doing?”

Kyungsoo only shrugs and looks around before he’s giving him another grin and telling him to stay put. “Count to twenty and then come find me,” he whispers, reaching up to cover Sehun’s eyes with his own hands, before Sehun gets the hint and covers his own eyes. “Let’s play hide-and-seek.”

 

Sehun half-expects Kyungsoo to leave him after that day. His other friends in elementary school left him after finding out what his word means. It only makes sense that Kyungsoo follows in their footsteps, but he’s surprised to see Kyungsoo waiting for him at the entrance of the cafeteria the next day.

Their gazes meet and Kyungsoo’s smile brightens even more despite the small crowd around him. He leaves them immediately and Sehun stops in his tracks, stares as Kyungsoo quickly makes his way for him, and he squeaks when Kyungsoo suddenly pulls him in for a hug. “I couldn’t find you earlier,” Kyungsoo murmurs against him, before he’s pulling away and looking at him. “So, I figured you’d eat lunch like everyone else.”

Sehun can’t say anything, his throat closing in on him, so he looks up to see what Kyungsoo’s friends are doing. They’re staring at him with a look similar to confusion before it morphs into a glare. “But what about your friends?” he murmurs instead, feeling warm all of a sudden with all the attention on him.

“What about them?” Kyungsoo retorts, scoffing. He casts a glance over his shoulder at them. “They can handle themselves.”

The group easily leaves them at his words, though Sehun’s sure they can’t hear them. “They’re your _friends_ ,” Sehun emphasizes, blushing when Kyungsoo turns and links an arm with him. He guides him towards the cafeteria and Sehun looks around them, only to catch Jongin’s curious gaze on them from down the hall. “You shouldn’t just leave them.”

Kyungsoo scoffs again and Sehun turns to see Kyungsoo giving him a soft smile, before he shakes his head at him. “Aren’t you my friend too? I can’t just leave you.”

Other students walk past them and Sehun winces when he’s shoved again, causing Kyungsoo to stumble over too. “I’m sorry,” Sehun breathes, helping Kyungsoo to stay upright, even as he’s pushed again. His heart pounds as he stares at Kyungsoo, his wide eyes hardened into a glare. It’s not directed at him, rather to somewhere over his shoulder, but he doesn’t want Kyungsoo to suffer in any way he’s suffering. “You shouldn’t be friends with me.”

“You don’t have any right to say that,” Kyungsoo immediately says, frowning at him now. His arm is still firmly attached to his and Sehun panics. “If anyone is mean to you without me there, let me know.”

Kyungsoo’s stare is hard on him but it softens with each second that passes. It warms Sehun up from the inside, initially in surprise, and he looks away when he hears more kids walking towards them to get to the lunch line. He expects another shove, maybe a few more, but Kyungsoo pulls him towards him and he turns to see the kids being directed another way instead, a smiling Jongin pointing them to the new cakes the cafeteria has received today.

 

The library has been declared their safe haven. Sehun usually comes here to study and Kyungsoo usually comes here to study and bother Sehun into playing games with him. It doesn’t take long for him to figure out Kyungsoo has really bad study habits and it doesn’t take much longer after that for Sehun to tell him so. Even then, Kyungsoo just laughs it off, crumples up another piece of paper, and tosses it at his head.

“You’re mean,” Sehun accuses, taking the paper ball and tossing it right back at Kyungsoo, who only gasps in surprise. His eyes are wide and Sehun thinks he looks like some kind of animal he’s seen in books before. “See? Do you like it?”

Slowly, the expression on Kyungsoo’s face changes and Sehun stares at him, mortified, when he realizes there’s a _smirk_ on his friend’s face. “Is that a challenge?” Kyungsoo questions, ripping out another piece of paper and crumpling it up into a ball.

“No?” Sehun says, slowly, cautiously, contemplating diving under the study desk for coverage or not. “It’s not–!”

Within minutes, Kyungsoo is ripping out page after page while Sehun tries not to shriek as loud as he can. They’re in the library and _need_ to be quiet but it’s not happening with Sehun and Kyungsoo throwing paper balls at each other in some version of a recreational battlefield.

Sehun is in the middle of tossing one of Kyungsoo’s paper balls back at him when he’s suddenly tackled to the floor, an out-of-breath Kyungsoo pinning him down with his weight and covering his mouth with his hands.

The blood is rushing in Sehun’s ears, making it difficult to hear anything else, but he can hear the approaching footsteps of who he assumes is the librarian. The steps are loud, threatening, and he holds his breath the same time Kyungsoo does. It feels like it takes forever for the person to come, but then they hear a surprised noise before the scampering of feet. Someone is suddenly crouching next to the on the floor and Sehun and Kyungsoo turn with wide eyes to see Jongin peering down at them just as curiously.

“Are you guys doing something nasty?”

It takes a minute of intense thinking, but then Sehun is gasping and Kyungsoo is rolling off with a burst of laughter. “No!” Sehun sputters, looking back and forth between a laughing Kyungsoo and a smiling Jongin. He pouts when Jongin starts to laugh too. “Jongin!”

There’s too much laughter to hear another set of approaching footsteps and before they know it, the actual librarian is standing feet away from them, giving them a reprimanding stare.

The librarian bans them for a week.

 

“Honestly, middle school isn’t that bad, especially if I could grow as tall as you.”

Sehun looks over from stacking up the classroom chairs, a punishment he has to do because he totally turned his paper in on time but the teacher somehow ‘lost’ it on the way home the day before. There are about fifteen chairs left, the ten remaining already stacked up in front of him, and he lightly glares at his best friend. Kyungsoo is sitting on top of one of the desks, scrolling through his tablet.

“I’m sure if you weren’t sitting there and actually stretching out your muscles, you’d grow to be as tall as me,” Sehun retorts, glare cracking when Kyungsoo looks up and sticks his tongue out at him.

“My doctor says I’m not going to get much taller than 173 cm. I’d be lucky to even reach 173.5 cm.”

Sehun snorts. He doesn’t know how tall he’s going to be. His doctor wasn’t very happy to see him after finding out what his word is, even though he’s pretty sure they’re not supposed to have any prejudices of any kind. He’s an old geezer though. “I don’t know why we have to stack the chairs when we’re just going to use them tomorrow.”

“It’s cruel and unusual punishment, I tell you,” Kyungsoo sings, waving his hand in the air, even as he’s still staring at his tablet. “That’s what middle school is.”

Sehun huffs as he starts a new stack of chairs before casting a glance over his shoulder. “Didn’t you just say middle school isn’t all that bad?”

Kyungsoo meets his stare, void of any hint of emotion in his eyes. “Well, you met me, right? I met you? It isn’t all that bad.”

And really, Sehun doesn’t understand him. He never really does, so he just laughs. His eyes crinkle and he can hear Kyungsoo start to laugh in the midst of his giggling. “I guess so,” Sehun manages to say. He smiles at his friend then. “Come on, help me with this.”

“I am your upperclassman, sir,” Kyungsoo suddenly calls out, but he’s smiling as well when he places his tablet next to him and hops off of the desk to join him. He’s not that much shorter than Sehun, but when he stands next to him, he has to tilt his head down to meet him eye-to-eye. Sehun pouts when Kyungsoo pokes his shoulder. “I should do no stacking of the chairs for free.”

They take a second to stare at each other, _really stare_ at each other, before Sehun rolls his eyes and holds his arms out. With one step, Kyungsoo is smiling brightly and rushing forward to give him a hug. “You’re so weird,” Sehun comments softly, fondly, which only causes Kyungsoo to laugh.

“Well, let’s hope your weird still continues to mix well with my weird in the future.”

Something twists uncomfortably inside Sehun’s chest at those words, but he tries to push it down. He doesn’t want to ruin the good mood. “Yeah, right,” Sehun murmurs, dropping his arms. He expects Kyungsoo to let go, to step away and help him move the chairs around instead of actually stacking them, but he doesn’t. Kyungsoo stays right there, hugging him, and Sehun feels a little awkward and a little flattered.

“We’re going to be together in high school and it’s going to be better than this place.” The way Kyungsoo says it makes Sehun want to believe in his words. “And you’re going to get so tired of me, you wish you had other friends.”

At that, Sehun snorts unattractively, feeling sentimental all of a sudden. Kyungsoo’s been his best friend for the better part of two years. He’s pretty sure he won’t get tired of him.

How can he get tired of someone so _Whimsical_?

 

 

 _Apricity_ —

When Sehun finally leaves middle school and enters high school, he expects the shout of his name and a smaller body tackling into him for a hug. It causes a plethora of confusion around them, but he laughs it off anyways, because this is Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo has been his best friend for three years and counting and he’ll always keep him close to him until Kyungsoo decides to leave him one day. He hopes that doesn’t happen though, because friends are scarce and Kyungsoo is never this open, this loud, in public spaces unless it’s with him, Oh Sehun.

But there are still classes to attend, extra-curricular activities to join, and it’s the reason why Sehun finds himself in the photography after school club. He’s standing at the front of the class with Jongin right beside him and he’s slightly amazed that they’re even going to the same school and club together, again.

“My name is Kim Jongin. It’s a pleasure to meet all of you. Please treat me well,” Jongin introduces himself, with a smile and a wave. His hair is dark, a bit curly at the ends, and Sehun has to slightly look up to him when he turns to face him. His eyes are uncharacteristically warm, nothing like the other kids in the room who give him stares ranging from blank to disgust. He’s still smiling at him, though he whispers, “Sehun, it’s your turn now.”

That instantly brings Sehun back to the present, quickly turning to the class with wide eyes and giving a bow of his own. When he stands straight again, he quickly locates Kyungsoo in the crowd giving him an encouraging smile. “My name is Oh Sehun,” he says, voice considerably softer than Jongin’s. He refrains from wincing when the students in the back lean forward to hear him more. He speaks louder, feels his cheeks warm at the excessive attention. “It’s a pleasure to be meeting all of you. I hope to have fun in the club.”

There’s some sparse clapping, but then there’s Kyungsoo, clapping louder than the rest, and another guy sitting right next to him, giving him a curious gaze but a bright smile.

 

It doesn’t take long to figure out that kids in high school, well, literally don’t care about another person’s word. Sure, they search for it behind a person’s right ear and, sure, they look up the definition of the harder words through their tablets, but in all reality, they don’t go out of their way to make another person feel bad. It’s what keeps Sehun from plummeting in a new environment with new classmates. Well, that, and lunch.

Lunch is everybody’s favorite ‘subject’ and the food is considerably better than middle school’s lunches. Sehun finds his favorite is the spaghetti and he takes pride in the fact that it makes Kyungsoo convert from pizza slices everyday to pizza slices every other day with spaghetti in-between. He laughs when Kyungsoo slurps on a noodle, causing it to whip up and hit him on the cheek. A trail of red sauce stays in its wake and it only causes Sehun to laugh more when the other guy sitting with them from the photography club, the one who never really asks about him, doesn’t stare as long as necessary, reaches out with a clean napkin and wipes the sauce off of Kyungsoo’s cheek for him. All it does is make Kyungsoo glare at him and Sehun avoids his best friend’s incredulous look in favor of staring at his noodles.

“Go away, Baekhyun. I’m trying to get in some quality time with my best friend.”

“But you’re always with him,” Baekhyun whines, holding out his second pepperoni pizza slice in front of Kyungsoo as bargain. “I just want to join the club.”

Kyungsoo scoffs, though he does keep eyeing the pizza slice. “We already have the perfect amount of members, thank you.”

Sehun smiles at his words before he opens his mouth to shovel more food into it.

“And stop glancing at him. That’s rude.”

Sehun stops mid-bite, casting a glance up to see that, yes, Baekhyun is indeed staring at him and it unnerves him. He’s had to learn how to read others’ expressions to defend himself from possible abuse, but he can’t read anything from Baekhyun’s face. He can’t tell if he’s silently judging him or just appreciating his presence, like that’s ever going to happen.

“Well,” Baekhyun eventually says, carefully placing his pizza slice on Kyungsoo’s plate. “That’s yours, by the way, but I also wanted to stare at him up close.” Sehun wants to speak, to ask _why_ , because he doesn’t want to be made fun of again, but Baekhyun easily catches Kyungsoo’s arm when he reaches out to hit him. “The other guys and girls thrive off of gossip,” he murmurs, his gaze softening and a smile taking over his lips. “They say you’re mean, that you simply _embody Inclemency_ , but none of them have taken the time to actually be near you, to see you up close.” He lets go when Kyungsoo’s jaw drops, suddenly amazed with his presence. “But I think you’re pretty cute.”

“But my word is unkind,” Sehun murmurs, eyes filling up with unshed tears, blurring his vision. “It’s unkind and merciless and nobody likes ugly words.”

“But you’re not ugly,” Baekhyun retorts, smile falling off his face. There’s genuine concern in his gaze and Sehun flinches when he reaches out towards him, only to still with shock when Baekhyun gently wipes a finger underneath his left eye. He catches the stray tears. “I don’t think you ever were, if Kyungsoo, as unpredictable and fickle as he is, has stayed by you for so long.”

There’s a loud thud and Baekhyun suddenly yelps, jolting back and reaching down to cradle his leg. Kyungsoo is smiling next to him and everything changes. It shocks Sehun.

“Ow! Soo!”

“Fickle is such a terrible word to describe me,” Kyungsoo mutters in defense, glaring at Baekhyun with the intensity of a thousand suns. “I prefer playful and mysterious.”

“I prefer erratic and unstable!”

There are more swings, more kicks, and Sehun has to blink away the tears to actually laugh at the situation in front of him. The weight on his heart lifts with each word that falls out of his best friend’s and Baekhyun’s mouth. He ends up laughing it away, eyes crinkling up and covering his mouth with a hand. “I like you,” he blurts out, directing his stare to Baekhyun who freezes mid-defense, with his arms up in the air to protect his head. “You aren’t fake like everyone else here.”

His words cause Kyungsoo to freeze mid-attack, but then he’s giving him one of his bright smiles, the one that makes him feel secure and loved. He can tell it throws Baekhyun off-guard, but then Baekhyun is getting up and walking around the table. He watches his every move, watches as he waves and greets everybody that passes by, even Jongin who gives them a curious stare, but then he settles in the seat next to Sehun. He leans over until his head is against his shoulder, a gentle weight, so strangely like Baekhyun.

“Well, I like you too,” Baekhyun confesses, reaching out to link arms with him. Across from them, Sehun can see Kyungsoo trying to hide a smile. But his eyes say something else. He’s staring at them like they’re his entire world. “Everybody should too.”

 

Weekdays consist of going to school then going straight home after to do homework. Sometimes, weekdays also include dodging rude classmates and avoiding mean teachers who like to ask Sehun for help when, in reality, they’re just asking him to do chores they don’t want to do. Sehun doesn’t understand it and he treasures the moments when Kyungsoo and Baekhyun manage to find him before he can give an answer, even Jongin will swing by and save him.

But today is Saturday. Saturday is part of the weekend and, as usual, weekends are different for Sehun. Weekends are fun and filled with hanging out with Kyungsoo if they’re not trapped in each of their houses finishing up homework. Sehun’s parents like to go out and run their errands on this day, so Sehun and Kyungsoo have proclaimed the entire day as Movie Day Saturday. It’s always fun and comfortable, ever since they started this tradition in middle school, but it’s different today.

Today, Sehun is busy cleaning his house, like he did the first time he invited Kyungsoo over to watch a movie, and he’s busy making sure he actually has snacks and drinks, unlike he did the first time he invited Kyungsoo over and realized they were going to starve until his parents returned home. It’s the same yet all so different because today is the first day he’s invited Baekhyun into his house, where they’re going to hang out outside of school grounds and hopefully have a good time.

It helps that Kyungsoo is busy choosing movies to watch as well as grabbing an abundance of blankets and pillows to place on the floor for a huge makeshift bed. Even if they’re in high school, it’s nice to escape from the outside world, back to a time when everything is innocent and wonderful and _fun_.

“So, we have popcorn,” Sehun states, as he returns from the kitchen and taking stock of his inventory. The entire house is clean by now, even the bathroom and his parents’ bedroom, so everything should be in order. “We have lots of water and carbonated drinks–”

“Who in the world says carbonated drinks?” Kyungsoo shoots back, looking over his shoulder at him and giving him a confused stare. “Isn’t it soda?”

Sehun rolls his eyes. “Not all carbonated drinks are soda, Soo. Keep up.”

At that, Kyungsoo clicks his tongue and turns back around, settling down into his makeshift pillow pile. “Rude.”

“Anyways,” Sehun emphasizes, shooting his best friend a look, even if he can’t see him. His word shimmers in the light, though, and _that_ he can see. “We have all the snacks and drinks and everything. Baekhyun should be coming soon so–”

“Calm down, Sehun,” Kyungsoo says, voice soft but clear and ringing through the air. It instantly calms Sehun’s nerves, his heart rate slowing down at a pace of a snail’s, and he takes a deep breath as he hears Kyungsoo say, “Breathe.”

It’s been a while since he’s opened up to anyone other than Kyungsoo. In fact, it’s been a while since he’s felt this _safe_ with anyone other than Kyungsoo and, to be honest, it’s quite a big deal to him. But he can’t think anymore of it, jumping when he hears knocks on his front door. He quickly rushes to it, not wanting his friend to wait long, and can clearly see Baekhyun’s blurry image through the patterned glass door. There’s a friendly wave and when Sehun opens the door, Baekhyun is holding up a large recycling bag of what looks like snacks and drinks.

“I have to bring some food too, right?” Baekhyun says in greeting, smile lighting up his whole face. He doesn’t care about anything else, only that he gets to spend some quality time with Sehun and Kyungsoo. Sehun can’t stop laughing when Baekhyun and Kyungsoo re-enact all of the iconic scenes from Zootopia, which, according to them, well, is the entire thing.

 

“You should hold it up like this,” Baekhyun instructs carefully, moving Sehun’s hands around while firmly holding the camera in their hands so it doesn’t drop. Sehun’s been trying to take a photo of these flowers in a field in the outskirts of their town, but he hasn’t been satisfied with each one he’s taken so far.

Baekhyun turns him slightly before he’s rushing around to try and get his body into position. Sehun thinks it shouldn’t be this much work to take one photo, but then he’s getting flicked on the ear and he whines. “Baekhyun, come on. We’ve been out here for hours. Let’s go home.”

“We would’ve been able to,” Baekhyun relents, though now he’s frowning and huffing at him, hands placed on his lips and giving him a reprimanding stare. “But you keep complaining your pictures aren’t turning out how you like. So, I’m trying to help you change it up until you take one you absolutely like.”

A breeze suddenly picks up and Sehun shivers, suddenly remembering that, oh yes, it’s fall and close to winter and there have already been news reports about snow falling soon. “It’s too cold for this,” he whines some more, pouting when Baekhyun simply huffs again. “Fine,” he mumbles, lifting up the camera to his eye. He takes a picture of the flowers still trying to bloom, before Baekhyun’s butt is blocking his view. He scowls, moving the camera away from his face. “Get your butt out of my picture.”

“Excuse you,” Baekhyun fires back, though he looks amused when he looks over his shoulder, smile playful. “My butt is a masterpiece. Have you not seen our classmates staring at it?”

“You’re two grades ahead of me,” Sehun deadpans. “How would I know your classmates have been eyeing your ass?”

Baekhyun rolls his eyes, turning around completely to give him a pointed look. “ _Our_ classmates,” he amends, before smiling brightly at him and throwing his arms up in the air. “Come on. Take my picture and then we’ll go back! Are you satisfied with your– Hey! I was in the middle of talking!”

Sehun can’t help the laughter that bubbles out of his mouth, spilling over, as he pulls his camera away to look at his latest photo. Baekhyun radiates a warmth different from Kyungsoo, one where he feels absolutely safe if he’s near, and in this picture, Baekhyun’s mouth is wide open with the weirdest expression on his face. Sehun can’t help laughing some more, feeling the frost in his life melt the littlest bit every time he’s with Baekhyun, and, yeah, Sehun is pretty satisfied with their little adventure.

 

 

 _Purpose_ —

“That child must be evil. Can the Oracle give a word so ominous?”

Sehun lowers his head, hunches in a little more, and hopes the old woman stops talking.

“He must’ve done something to his parents. Were they not happy with his birth?”

Walking down the sidewalk shouldn’t be a problem. It’s never a problem in the winter when he can cover up his word with thick clothes, but it’s spring and slowly becoming warmer. He can’t hide his word anymore because he hates it when his hair reaches his collar. He bites his lip to keep from saying anything. Why is the woman still walking behind him? Who is she even talking to?

Suddenly, someone bumps his shoulder and Sehun flinches. His eyes squeeze shut on instinct, but then an arm is wrapping itself around his shoulders and they fly right back open. He quickly looks to his side, where Jongin is staring straight ahead of them with a determined expression in his eyes. “Jongin?” he quietly asks, unsure of what to say. He usually only sees him during their classes, which they have almost every single one together, and their photography club.

“I was out here going to the mall too,” Jongin simply replies, expression softening until he’s turning and giving him a smile. “Is that where you’re headed? I’ll go with you.”

Sehun opens his mouth to tell him, ‘yeah, I’m going there to meet Baekhyun and Kyungsoo,’ but then he shuts his mouth when he can hear the woman talking behind him again. He makes the mistake of casting a glance back at her and she’s walking with an elderly man who’s obviously sneering at him.

“Who would associate themselves with a terrible child like him? He’s only going to bring misfortune to those he’s near.”

There’s a gentle shake to his shoulders, so Sehun turns away. He stares back into the side of Jongin’s face and feels his cheeks warm up when Jongin tilts his head slightly to give him another small smile. “Don’t listen to them,” he whispers, leaning in close to make it look like they’ve been friends their entire lives. Though, technically, they could be. “We don’t have to stay together the entire way, but I’ll be happy to keep you company.” When he leans away, Sehun feels his heart speed. He hasn’t noticed until now. Jongin is really handsome.

“I’d like that,” Sehun whispers back, trying to look back at the elderly couple again, but Jongin keeps his arm tight around his shoulders. He can’t stop the words from falling out of his mouth. “I’m supposed to meet up with Kyungsoo and Baekhyun. They wanted to come pick me up but I’m out of the way from them.”

Jongin chuckles, shaking his head in what Sehun hopes is fondness. “I would say you should’ve let them pick you up, but I understand where you’re coming from. I told my sisters I was just going to go to music store down the street.” Sehun immediately looks down at his words, wondering if he managed to buy something. There’s nothing. “But I saw these old geezers following you, so I decided to see what was going on.”

It takes a few minutes, but then the words click in Sehun’s head and he gapes at his classmate, blushes furiously when Jongin reaches out with his free hand and pokes the word on Sehun’s neck.

“ _Inclemency_ is a harsh word. I want to cover it so those mean, superstitious jerks can finally stop talking about you, but I also want you to embrace it.”

“What?” Sehun gasps out, flinching when Jongin pokes his neck again, but he doesn’t have time to say anything else, because he can hear Kyungsoo calling his name from a distance. He whips his head to see Kyungsoo and Baekhyun walking towards them, but they slow in their tracks when they see what’s happening with him. Kyungsoo looks mad but there’s a pleased smile on Baekhyun’s face as he rushes towards them and pulls Sehun away by his hand. He tugs him into a hug. “Baek.”

“I told Kyungsoo we should’ve gone and pick you up, but he complained saying we just got to the mall and that we should just go by your word that you’d show up, but I got worried,” Baekhyun easily confesses, pulling away to look up at him. His hand automatically finds Sehun’s hair and his fingers card through it to fix his fringe even though Sehun’s sure his hair is perfectly fine.

“I’m sure if Baekhyun _had his own license_ then everything would’ve been fine,” Kyungsoo counters back. He sounds mean, angry, but when Sehun looks over to him, he sees Kyungsoo is staring down Jongin beside him. “Hello there, Jongin.”

Sehun doesn’t understand why. From what he could tell from their joint photography club, both Kyungsoo _and_ Baekhyun like Jongin.

“Hi there, Kyungsoo,” Jongin greets back politely, giving him a small wave.

The elderly couple behind them has stopped, and so has others trying to walk down the sidewalk, and Sehun blushes when Jongin reaches up to gently cup his neck, his thumb fitting in the curve behind his ear to cover his word. Sehun can tell everybody is trying to see why they’re taking up the whole side, trying to search for their words, and he mentally thanks Jongin with a small smile when the passersby simply continue on their way through and around them.

“Well,” Jongin says, taking a step closer so other people can walk past him. Sehun can feel Baekhyun’s arms tighten around his waist and he suddenly feels so warm. Jongin is smiling brightly at him, his thumb gently caressing his skin over his word. “I’ll take my leave now, yeah? You’re with your friends now.” He finally turns his head to the side, to personally eye the elderly couple until they’re grumbling and walking away, and Sehun can see the glimmer of his word: _Purpose_.

Between his friends, Baekhyun is the first to speak up. He steps away from Sehun and eyes Jongin just like how he eyed him that one day in the cafeteria. It feels like hours before Baekhyun’s blank stare slowly turns into a smile. “Interesting,” he comments, reaching up to ruffle Jongin’s hair like a puppy. He’s short compared to them, Kyungsoo too, and Sehun still chuckles every time they bring up their height deficiencies. Jongin only smiles brightly in return. “Thank you for taking care of him.”

“Yeah,” Kyungsoo quips, arms crossed in front of his chest, but his secret smile to Sehun isn’t so secret anymore. “Thanks.”

“Of course,” Jongin mumbles back, suddenly becoming embarrassed. His cheeks are turning pink and Sehun smiles as Jongin gently puts pressure on his neck before he finally lets his arm drop. “I’d– I’m always here.”

 

It actually happens more often than not, the way Jongin appears and disappears in and out of his life. He’s always in his classes, always lurking somewhere in the background, that sometimes, Sehun doesn’t even see him. He doesn’t recognize him when he’s talking to their classmates. He doesn’t recognize him in the lunchroom when he’s sitting somewhere he can barely see. The only times he recognizes him is in their photography club, where Jongin makes sure to sit next to him any chance he gets, because sometimes Baekhyun is too busy leading the club and Kyungsoo can only occupy one side of him at all times.

“All of you know I’m graduating in the spring,” Baekhyun announces one afternoon, when everybody is wiped from their mid-semester exams. Except Baekhyun. He never appears tired. “And I’ve decided who would be my successor to keep this place running all smooth and pretty-like.”

There are a series of groans followed by whispers and not-so-secretive glances at Sehun. He sinks further into his seat even if Baekhyun calls everyone’s attention to him again, but he smiles when Jongin reaches out to wrap his arm around his shoulders again. Sehun is still growing taller but he finds that Jongin likes wrapping his arm around him, unlike Baekhyun and Kyungsoo who have taken to hugging his lanky form instead.

“My successor will be Kyungsoo until he decides who the next president will be.”

More whispers follow that, but this time they are excited ones, casting smiles in Kyungsoo’s direction. Sehun would scoot away, closer to Jongin, but Kyungsoo has a firm grip on his hand to keep him in place.

“We’re going to make sure the transition is smooth as all the pictures we take. Deal?”

“Deal!”

“Now, lets see all the photos you managed to take before the exam week of hell!”

 

There aren’t many things to do in the middle of summer. Quite honestly, all Sehun does is sleep, wake up, eat, play games of some type, and then sleep again. It isn’t much, but he also gets to hang out with Baekhyun before he leaves for university and Kyungsoo, because, well, Kyungsoo will be offended if he’s not invited to everything even though he automatically is.

Though, it’s when they’re at the mall again eating in the food court that Sehun startles, watching as Baekhyun offers a wide, friendly wave to someone behind him. A hand gently touches his shoulder, drags across his back, before a hand is cupping his neck again, like that time Jongin covered his word to avoid unnecessary sneers. He looks over, mid-bite in his burger, to see Jongin giving him a soft smile.

“I’m sorry,” Jongin whispers, taking the free seat next to him, before casting a glance over his shoulder to a group of teenage girls sitting at the table a bit farther away. “They wouldn’t stop staring at me so I decided to come here and bother you.”

Sehun stares at the group of girls a minute longer, takes note of pretty long hair and even prettier eyes, before he finally swallows his food and turns back to Jongin. “Well,” he says, feeling Jongin gently rub his thumb behind his ear again. His heart speeds at the touch. “You’re welcome to bother us all you want, as long as you’re not an insensitive jerk about it.”

“If you are, then I’m going to kick your ass,” Kyungsoo pipes up, threatening Jongin with a glare.

“He’d do it too,” Baekhyun adds in with a bright smile.

Next to him, Jongin smiles sheepishly, slowly removing his hand from Sehun’s neck. “Well, thanks,” he murmurs. “I think.”

Sehun gives him a small smile before returning to his burger. Their table falls into a comfortable silence where Baekhyun shares his fries with Jongin and Sehun snorts as Kyungsoo continues to gently knock his foot into his shins as if he’s playing some weird version of a piano. It’s nice, something that Sehun can get use to, but then he tunes into something else other than his friends, to elderly couples who walk past them and other teenagers sitting near them.

He can hear them talking about the Oracle, about how her words are law and it’s unbreakable, and it shouldn’t be anything new. But then, someone mentions the word _Inclemency_ and how they’re surprised Sehun has such wonderful looking friends and Sehun doesn’t know whether to blush in embarrassment or happiness, or maybe offense. A hand on his knee brings his attention back to the present and he looks over to see Jongin giving him another smile, before he takes a fry from his plate.

“Can I have a fry?” Jongin asks, though his smile is almost secretive, like he can hear everyone else talking around them too. He eats it before waiting for a response.

Instead of saying anything else, Sehun snorts, pushing his plate over towards Jongin. “You already ate one.”

“You’re the best,” Jongin compliments with a wide smile, stealing more of his fries.

In front of them, Kyungsoo and Baekhyun are staring at him, curious and amused, and it takes all of Sehun’s willpower to avoid their gazes.

 

Returning to school is a bit different than leaving it. Summer break is filled with late nights, junk food, and sleeping in but for school, it’s the complete opposite. Sehun has to sleep early, eat a bit healthier than he’s used to, and wake up way earlier than he prefers. This time, Kyungsoo is struggling to make it to his classes without Baekhyun’s energy to keep him up and Sehun sighs as he struggles with him, dragging him to classes before going to his own where he searches out Jongin because they’re _always_ in the same classes.

But he doesn’t see him. He doesn’t see the messy brown hair or the sleepy brown eyes. He doesn’t see sun-kissed skin and a wonderful smile. Instead, he feels an arm come to sling around his shoulders, pulling him in close, and he smiles when he smells Jongin’s usual laundry detergent clinging onto him.

“I hate the first day of school,” Jongin mumbles, leaning in closer, until his forehead is touching the right side of Sehun’s neck. Sehun stifles his laughter as he tries to drag them into class, towards the back where two seats are available right next to each other. “I’m so tired.”

“I know,” Sehun says, a burst of surprised laughter escaping his mouth anyways, because he suddenly feels soft lips on his neck, behind his right ear, ghosting over his word. It almost feels like a kiss. “I barely got more than five hours of sleep last night.”

As soon as the feeling comes, it’s gone and Jongin is pulling back to slump into his designated desk. “More than me. I got four,” but then he looks up to Sehun, who’s still staring at him with his heart racing, and there’s a hint of something else in his eyes despite how tired he looks. His word shimmers and Sehun feels his breath hitch at the sight. “It’s going to be a good year though, yeah?”

Sehun doesn’t understand it, not really anyways, but he smiles nonetheless. He sits down next to him and kicks Jongin’s leg, just because he can. “Yeah,” he says, already accustomed to ignoring everyone else around him, the loud whispers and harsh stares. “It’s going to be a good year.”

 

It starts off as a good year. The subjects aren’t as hard as Kyungsoo warns them but they still have to study a lot. They all spend time together in the library to make sure they don’t fail and if they weren’t together, they would be messaging each other whenever they could. It doesn’t surprise Sehun to be spending more time alone. What surprises him is how Baekhyun and Kyungsoo managed to spend so much time with him when they had twice the workload he does now.

“It’s because we did our homework in class five minutes before it was due,” Kyungsoo explains to him one day with a shrug. Sehun gapes. “It wasn’t that bad. _Honestly_.”

When Sehun asks Baekhyun the same question, he virtually gets the same answer, “Yeah, I finished all my easy homework during lunch. Did you not see me scrambling to finish that stuff in-between Soo feeding me lunch?” He scoffs just _thinking_ about it. His friends are such great role models.

Sehun frowns when a paper plane hits him on the head. Recently, he’s made it a habit to come to school early to finish his homework. The library is usually closed so he stays in the cafeteria, waiting for breakfast to be served, and only Jongin and Kyungsoo know he comes here early enough to actually try and be productive. Though, Kyungsoo’s preferred mode of communication is through paper balls. Jongin’s is through paper planes. He looks around him, trying to search for the other man, only to find the paper plane on the floor next to him. “Jongin,” he calls out, for good measure. He doesn’t hear any response.

The paper plane lies innocently next to him, so he picks it up and unfolds it. There aren’t any special messages in it, simply a blank piece of paper with Jongin’s name on it, and Sehun frowns before looking around again.

There isn’t anybody around him but if Kyungsoo and Baekhyun can finish their homework five minutes before class, he guesses he can too. He packs up his belongings quickly before he’s making his way out of the cafeteria. There still aren’t very many people at school yet, only the teachers and staff members, and Sehun doesn’t understand until he turns a corner and sees a girl waiting for him instead. She isn’t really staring at him, rather leaning against the wall and staring at the wall across from her, but then she startles when he lets out a surprised noise.

“Oh,” she gasps out, staring at him with wide eyes, before she looks down and sees the paper in his hand. “Oh, I’m sorry.”

Sehun stares at her, before looking down to his paper, before staring up at her again. He gives her a look. “You _do_ know Jongin and I look nothing alike, right?”

“I know _that_ ,” the girl says, exasperated, but then she looks embarrassed. “I just–”

“What are you doing here?”

Sehun raises a brow at the voice, looking over his shoulder to see Jongin standing there, staring at both of them with a mixture of confusion and caution. He’s not staring at him though. Instead, he’s staring at the girl across from Sehun. “Hey,” Sehun greets, returning to stare at the girl who looks like she’s about to run away from them. He doesn’t expect the arm around his shoulders again, even though he really should, and he doesn’t expect Jongin to be leaning in close to him again, even though this is happening more often than not. It makes him feel comfortable, a welcomed weight around him.

“If you’re trying to use him to get to me, you should stop right now,” Jongin says. It doesn’t sound threatening, but his voice is considerably deeper than normal, his entire posture turned towards Sehun protectively. “Anybody who uses somebody else to get to others doesn’t deserve what they receive.”

Sehun is stunned into silence at the answer. This is the first time he’s ever heard Jongin act like this, the first time he’s _seen_ Jongin like this, and he can only watch as Jongin gives the girl another look, one that’s impassive, dismissive.

“I suggest you leave, before Kyungsoo shows up and finds out what’s been going on.”

Those words make the girl instantly turn and walk away. Her face is a deep red, a frown marring her face, and she looks angry when Sehun chances a look at her. He can’t say she deserves what Jongin said to her but he also can’t say it was completely unwarranted. “Jongin,” he says, turning to face him again, “You shouldn’t–” He gasps, words cut off, when he suddenly finds soft lips pressed gently against his own.

Jongin is pulling him in closer, making sure to press his lips against his a little harder, before he’s pulling away and Sehun is staring at him up close, eyes wide. His lips tingle and he can see his reflection in Jongin’s eyes.

“I’m sorry,” Jongin murmurs, suddenly looking very unsure of himself, as he pulls away completely. “I– She has been trying to get my attention when I told her no already. And I knew you’d be at school early because homework has been a buzzkill recently. But I didn’t expect you and her to be here and I saw the messed up paper plane in your hand and _I_ only give that to you to bother you. It just,” Jongin takes in a deep breath, calming himself, as he looks away and to the ground between them. “She made me angry and I just wanted to kiss you.”

Jongin looks like a kicked puppy, completely different from all the other times he’s been apart of Sehun’s life, and it makes him smile when Jongin starts to tap his foot on the ground in uneven beats. “Shouldn’t we have kissed when she was still standing in front of us?” he asks, watching as Jongin whips his head up to look at him with wide eyes. “That would’ve made her really angry.”

The smile that blooms on Jongin’s face is one that Sehun thinks can definitely rival Kyungsoo’s and Baekhyun’s. He smiles at him in return, taking a step forward, and pulling Jongin in by his collar. Almost as if on instinct, Jongin’s hand comes up to cradle his head, thumbs finding their way on the grooves behind his ears. He’s still smiling when he leans in for another kiss, one that Sehun smiles into, because it makes his lips tingle and his heart soar.

Suddenly, there’s someone clicking their tongue and they separate to see Kyungsoo giving them one of the brightest smiles Sehun has ever seen in his lifetime, next to Jongin’s of course.

“Wait until I tell Baek all about this,” he says, sounding wistful. “Kissing on school grounds. Scandalous.”

 

The lake is beautiful during the autumn season. All the leaves are a shade of red, brown, or orange and it contrasts wonderfully with the blues and whites of the sky and the water. Baekhyun had told him this is one of the best places to take photos with the sunset in the background, so now here Sehun is, sitting at the edge of the dock, with Jongin right next to him.

“Honestly, elderly people need to grow up and realize that a person’s word can mean so many different things.”

Without thinking, Sehun snorts. He looks over to Jongin, where he’s staring out at the water before them. “Elderly people _are_ grown up,” he argues, smiling when Jongin does. “I’d think they’re the oldest they can ever get.”

“I meant mentally, or whatever,” Jongin says, picking up his camera and taking a random photo of the lake in front of them. “They’re so superstitious of everything. It gets annoying.”

Sehun hums, leaning over to leave a kiss on Jongin’s shoulder. He smiles when Jongin instantly turns and catches his lips with his own, giving him another soft kiss. “It does,” he agrees, leaning back and turning towards the lake again. His fingers on his left hand trace the outline of his camera next to him, the camera strap tangled all up his left arm to make sure it doesn’t fall into the water accidentally. “I’ve learned to just go with it. They’re stubborn with their beliefs. It sucks that they get to influence the younger generation as much as they do though.”

“Yeah, that sucks too,” Jongin hums. Another shutter sound. “They think they can boss me around all they want, or convince me my ‘purpose’ is to be in their lives, like I shouldn’t be doing what I want because I have to fulfill whatever crap they want me to fulfill.”

Sehun understands. His heart aches for him, because Jongin should do what _he_ wants, what makes _him_ feel comfortable and do what makes _him_ happy. He looks over to tell him so, maybe bump shoulders with him again or, maybe, kiss, but then he’s surprised to see Jongin’s camera lens facing him instead, able to take a picture of his word on his neck with ease at this angle.

 _Snap_.

“What a beautiful sight.”

**Author's Note:**

> dear prompter, i hope i did your prompt justice and i’m sorry if it didn’t really turn out the way you imagined. i saw it and i couldn’t get this story out of my head ;u; nonetheless, i hope you enjoyed it somewhat.


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